Will traffic in Seattle ever get better?

The short answer is, no

Traffic continues to be an issue and congestion isn't getting any better; so says the latest Corridor Capacity Report from the Washington State Department of Transportation.

We've gathered some of the main state

Traffic continues to be an issue and congestion isn't getting any better; so says the latest Corridor Capacity Report from the Washington State Department of Transportation.

We've gathered some of the main state highway and interstate commute times from the report here. Click through to see how travel times are changing on your commute. If you want to see the full report, click here.

The 24-mile trip from Everett to Seattle took an average of 51 minutes last year for single drivers, up from 44 minutes in 2012. The reliable travel time (the time needed to

Interstate 5, Seattle to Everett:

The 24-mile trip from Everett to Seattle took an average of 51 minutes last year for single drivers, up from 44 minutes in 2012. The reliable travel time (the time needed to make sure you get to work on time 19 out of 20 days) was 85 minutes, up from 76 in 2012.

On the return trip at 4:45 p.m., single drivers took 44 minutes on average, up from 38 minutes in 2012.

If you took transit, your trip averaged 68 minutes last year to go south and 55 minutes to go north.

The 22-mile trip north from Federal Way took an average of 46 minutes for the solo driver in 2012, but is now up to 52 minutes, with a reliable travel time of 76

Interstate 5, Federal Way to Seattle:

The 22-mile trip north from Federal Way took an average of 46 minutes for the solo driver in 2012, but is now up to 52 minutes, with a reliable travel time of 76 minutes, up from 66.

Heading home at the end of the day shortens that trip to 35 minutes as of last year, but that's still up from 32 minutes in 2012.

Transit travel northbound was 40 minutes on average last year, and 43 minutes southbound.

Photo: Google Street View, Google Street View/Wikimedia Commons/WSDOT

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Interstate 405, Lynnwood to Bellevue:

Last year, solo commuters heading south to Bellevue faced an average 47-minute trip, versus 41 minutes in 2012. The reliable commute time was high, at 73 minutes last

Interstate 405, Lynnwood to Bellevue:

Last year, solo commuters heading south to Bellevue faced an average 47-minute trip, versus 41 minutes in 2012. The reliable commute time was high, at 73 minutes last year.
If you carpooled, you could do the trip in 27 minutes, up from 20 two years prior.

Coming home in the afternoon, solo drivers had a shorter commute than the morning, at 37 minutes, but that was still longer than 2012, when it took 32 minutes.

Transit trips last year were 68 minutes southbound and 69 minutes northbound, with reliable trip times of 87 and 79 minutes, respectively.

Photo: Google Street View, Google Street View/Wikimedia Commons/WSDOT

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Interstate 405, Tukwila to Bellevue:

This 13-mile trip took solo drivers an average of 39 minutes heading north at 7:30 a.m. last year. That's up from 33 minutes in 2012. The reliable drive time was 52

Interstate 405, Tukwila to Bellevue:

This 13-mile trip took solo drivers an average of 39 minutes heading north at 7:30 a.m. last year. That's up from 33 minutes in 2012. The reliable drive time was 52 minutes.

Heading southbound in the afternoon wasn't much better, at 37 minutes on average. That's also up, from 34 minutes in 2012. Drivers using the HOV lanes with their carpool companions went from a 16 minute drive north in 2012, to a 22 minute drive in 2014. Heading home in HOV lanes took 21 minutes last year.

Transit riders could make the trip north in 33 minutes and south in 39 minutes, on average, last year.

Photo: Credit

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Interstate 90, Issaquah to Seattle:

Taking this 15-mile drive to Seattle in the morning cost solo drivers 19 minutes last year, up from 26 minutes in 2012. Using the HOV lanes cut that down to 19 minutes last

Interstate 90, Issaquah to Seattle:

Taking this 15-mile drive to Seattle in the morning cost solo drivers 19 minutes last year, up from 26 minutes in 2012. Using the HOV lanes cut that down to 19 minutes last year, versus 17 minutes in 2012. The reliable travel time was 42 minutes last year.

Heading home at 5:25 p.m. made for a 22-minute ride for solo drivers last year, a minute shorter than in 2012. Eastbound in the HOV lanes put the trip at 16 minutes, also a minute faster than in 2012.

Using public transit put the trip at 28 minutes westbound and 22 minutes eastbound.

Photo: JOSHUA TRUJILLO, SEATTLEPI.COM

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Interstate 90, Bellevue to Seattle:

Heading west to Seattle in the morning averaged 19 minutes for solo drivers last year, up two minutes from 2012. For HOV drivers, the trip took just 14 minutes.

Coming home to

Interstate 90, Bellevue to Seattle:

Heading west to Seattle in the morning averaged 19 minutes for solo drivers last year, up two minutes from 2012. For HOV drivers, the trip took just 14 minutes.

Coming home to Bellevue took 17 minutes for solo drivers to make the 11-mile journey last year, a full minute FASTER than in 2012.

Transit trips took 27 minutes westbound and 26 minutes eastbound.

Photo: Stephen Brashear, Getty Images

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State Route 520, Redmond to Seattle:

This 13-mile trip took solo drivers 20 minutes last year, leaving Redmond at 8:35 a.m., up from 18 minutes in 2012. HOV drivers actually averaged a longer commute in 2014, at

State Route 520, Redmond to Seattle:

This 13-mile trip took solo drivers 20 minutes last year, leaving Redmond at 8:35 a.m., up from 18 minutes in 2012. HOV drivers actually averaged a longer commute in 2014, at 23 minutes. The reliable trip time was 26 minutes.

Driving east from Seattle at 5:35 p.m., the trip averaged 18 minutes for solo drivers and carpoolers alike. That trip is up just one minute from 2012, for solo drivers, and up two minutes for HOV commuters.

The transit trip took 29 minutes either direction last year.

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State Route 520, Bellevue to Seattle:

For an 8:35 a.m. commute to Seattle on this 10-mile route, solo drivers and HOV drivers both did it in 17 minutes last year, up two minutes from 2012. A transit trip cost

State Route 520, Bellevue to Seattle:

For an 8:35 a.m. commute to Seattle on this 10-mile route, solo drivers and HOV drivers both did it in 17 minutes last year, up two minutes from 2012. A transit trip cost you 27 minutes.

For the return trip at 5:35 p.m., the trip took 17 minutes last year, the same as in 2012.

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Interstate 405, Lynnwood to Bellevue:

Last year, solo commuters headed south to Bellevue faced an average 47-minute trip, versus 41 minutes in 2012. The reliable commute time was high, at 73 minutes last year.

If

Interstate 405, Lynnwood to Bellevue:

Last year, solo commuters headed south to Bellevue faced an average 47-minute trip, versus 41 minutes in 2012. The reliable commute time was high, at 73 minutes last year.

If you carpooled, you could do the trip in 27 minutes, up from 20 two years prior.

Coming home in the afternoon, solo drivers had a shorter commute than the morning, at 37 minutes, but that was still longer than 2012, when it took 32 minutes.

Transit trips last year were 68 minutes southbound and 69 minutes northbound, with reliable trip times of 87 and 79 minutes, respectively.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons, Google Street View/Wikimedia Commons/WSDOT

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State Route 167, Auburn to Renton:

Heading to Renton at 7:45 a.m. made for an average 18-minute trip in 2014, the same as in 2012. The reliable drive time was 30 minutes last year, up two minutes from 2012. HOV

State Route 167, Auburn to Renton:

Heading to Renton at 7:45 a.m. made for an average 18-minute trip in 2014, the same as in 2012. The reliable drive time was 30 minutes last year, up two minutes from 2012. HOV lanes cut the trip down to 13 minutes last year, up from just 11 minutes in 2012.

The return trip at 3:45 p.m. took 19 minutes last year for solo drivers, and 12 minutes in the HOV lanes. The solo trip was slightly shorter, at 17 minutes, in 2012, and the same in the HOV lanes.

Transit trips got longer in both directions. It took 32 minutes northbound last year, up from 28 in 2012, and 41 minutes southbound, up from 37 minutes.

Photo: Elaine Thompson, AP

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Will the "Move Seattle" levy make things better? The levy wouldn't fund any state highways, but it would make surface-street improvements and local transit improvements, and those city streets are vital when,Will the "Move Seattle" levy make things better? The levy wouldn't fund any state highways, but it would make surface-street improvements and local transit improvements, and those city streets are vital when, for instance, a fish truck overturns and blocks the interstate.

Americans love their cars.

They love having the freedom to take off at will, to go wherever they want, whenever they want, beholden to no one.

Unfortunately, in a region with traffic as clogged as Seattle, that freedom is more than a little stifled. Most days, people around here would do better to hop on a bus, a streetcar or light rail than to get behind the wheel.

"The reality is, not everyone can drive everywhere in any vehicle they want all the time," said City Councilmember Mike O'Brien, who chairs the Sustainability and Transportation Committee.O'Brien, who also sits on the Sound Transit board, is among those who say that more public transit, more dense and affordable housing around transit hubs and fewer single-occupant vehicles on the road are the big ways to improve mobility in the region.

Transportation officials with the city and state agree that more transit is key, but they are also looking to maximize the highway systems that exist, through everything from adaptive traffic controls to adding lanes in high-congestion areas where space exists.

But even on highways, the more people in each vehicle, the better, they say.

"We know we're having a ton of people moving here, so we have to figure out how to use our existing right of way as efficiently as possible," O'Brien said. "And that is clearly not people driving in single occupancy vehicles."

While congestion isn't likely to go away any time soon, mobility could get better through added and streamlined ways to navigate the region.

Traffic troubles

Congestion in and around Seattle has been on an upward swing since the Great Recession gave way to a major economic recovery in the region.

The report showed an increased in vehicle delays of 45 percent -- to an annual vehicle delay of 3,756 hours.

Seattle's own Department of Transportation found traffic volumes up in the last three years, though still below a 2004 peak, according to its latest Traffic Report, which is based on 2014 data.

Part of the problem, of course, is the geography of the city, said Mark Bandy, director of transportation operations for Seattle's DOT.

"The (reasons) why most of us like to live here, the natural beauty -- hills and mountains and water -- are the things that present a notable challenge with respect to how our transportation system has been set up," Bandy said. "We have a few streets that run north-south, and they all funnel into the same pinch point where the highest concentration of employment is, which is downtown Seattle."

Bandy said that roughly 260,000 employees work in the downtown core, creating the potential for a lot of cars on the road.

And even while SDOT found that many of those workers are likely using alternatives to driving alone for their commute, the numbers keep growing.

Population surge

In the last five years, Seattle has seen its numbers swell like never before.

The Seattle, Tacoma, Bellevue metropolitan area saw an increase of more than 231,000 new residents between 2010 and 2014, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

Seattle alone welcomed 60,000 new residents in the same period, bringing the city's 10-year population increase to roughly 100,000.

"There's no doubt that the economy's booming and there are more people here," said Mark Leth, the central Puget Sound region traffic engineer for WSDOT. "And everybody's trying to get around."

Make the most of it

The infrastructure the region has is valuable, but is it enough?

Regardless of whether I-5, state Route 99, I-90, Interstate 405 and the bevy of surface streets in the area are adequate, experts and officials don't expect to add much to them. Rather, they figure on making the most of what already exists.

"You can't really build your way out of this," said Travis Phelps, spokesperson for WSDOT.

Within the city, SDOT's Bandy and his team have been working to collect data on traffic patterns to update signal timing as well as install new adaptive signal technology in some areas that can adjust during off-peak times to make traffic flow better for longer.

While such technology may not change much during the harshest parts of rush hour, it can shorten the worst window of congestion, Bandy said.

And voters shouldn't forget the massive $930 million Move Seattle levy they approved last fall, which Bandy said would certainly help the city maximize its transportation infrastructure.

WSDOT officials also have a host of plans either underway or on the horizon that aim to get more out of the clogged freeways and highways.

On I-90 between Issaquah and Eastgate, the state already has funding in place to do a project that would see the westbound roadway widened just a bit to allow for use of the right shoulder as an extra lane during morning commutes, Leth said. A similar project for the eastbound lanes is also under consideration, though not yet funded.

Similar shoulder lane expansions on other highways are in early stages, though those projects may be years down the road, Leth said.

And of course the recent addition of tolling on I-405 is aimed at lessening congestion there, though the success of that program was called into question by a recent report.

But one local expert thinks tolling is one of the best tools to help alleviate congestion.

"Parking and tolls are the things that change peoples' nature," said Scott Rutherford, director of the Sustainable Transportation program and professor at University of Washington. "You can pay for it two ways. You can pay for it with your money or you can pay for it with your time."

Rutherford said he expects tolls on all the major highways in coming years, as the price reduces demand for lanes and provides a bit of revenue that can go to upkeep on the system as well.

Carpooling can help, too, but the vehicles need to be three-plus carpools at least to make an impact on demand, Rutherford said. Vanpools are even better.

Still, he and Councilmember O'Brien agree that if people are going to have better mobility in the region, they need options that don't involve getting in cars -- and officials need to give them those options.

Getting out of the car

In Seattle, getting out of the car most often means getting on a bus, and Metro has added a lot of service in the last year, with more to come in March, O'Brien said.

But other forms of transit are growing, too.

The growing downtown streetcar network is also adding capacity in that area, and the University Link addition to Sound Transit's light rail system -- set to open March 19 -- will give commuters an 8-minute ride to or from downtown to the University of Washington with a stop on Capitol Hill.

Sound Transit's Link light rail service between downtown Seattle and Sea-Tac Airport is already serving about 34,000 riders each weekday, according to numbers from December. The addition of the University link will add another 71,000 riders per day by 2030, bringing total daily ridership to 114,000, according to Sound Transit.

But it's too little, too late, and more is needed, Rutherford said.

Seattle had a chance in 1968 and 1970 to build a rapid transit system that would have gotten two-thirds of its funding from the federal government -- Forward Thrust -- but voters turned it down.

Now, adding light rail piecemeal takes time and is still costly.

"Light rail is coming online too slow to make a difference, it's not an end-all for sure," Rutherford said. "It's going to take more than that."

Sound Transit would beg to differ, however.

The transit organization projects a million more people living in the region by 2040, and those people can't all be driving cars to work.

"Obviously we believe that the way to move people is through high capacity transit," said Kimberly Reason, public information officer with Sound Transit. "Our goal is to get people out of their cars and on transit. We certainly hope our efforts will decrease congestion."

But beyond how people get around should be a wider look at what's making the commute so bad, O'Brien said.

People forced to live outside the city because of soaring housing costs aren't going to make commuting any easier, he pointed out. So, the city's work on affordable housing may play a crucial role in helping peoples' mobility.

Building up housing density around transit centers will make it easier for people to take advantage of buses or light rail, and work is already underway to move forward on such density, he noted.

The other tool in the city's belt is parking, Rutherford said.

Limiting the number of parking spaces in new developments, and charging more for street parking can push people into other forms of transit, he said.

"We can't expect people to get a free parking space and then take the bus," he said. "They're just not going to do that."

O'Brien, too, said parking is a tool, and he is an advocate for limiting free street parking not only to usher commuters to transit, but also to make sure parking is always available.

The bottom line for O'Brien and like-minded planners is that people are going to need to change their habits and thinking around mobility.

Perhaps the automobile will truly take a backseat to other modes of transit, even at the cost of changing a bit of Americana.